Introduction

In the digital era, securing websites with SSL certificates has become a standard practice. SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) ensures that data transmitted between a user’s browser and a website remains encrypted and protected from unauthorized access.

SSL is the underlying technology that enables and secures the HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure) protocol. Without SSL, HTTPS would not be possible.

The Problem

Owing to the lack of a valid SSL certificate on the source domain, redirecting or forwarding it to a destination URL can sometimes lead to SSL errors — causing frustration and confusion for website owners.

HTTPS redirection has priority over HTTP redirection. It’s an official ranking factor that Google takes seriously because it ensures site security and protects user information. Hence, setting up SSL/HTTPS is very important.

So, how do you get an SSL certificate for the source domain?

Solutions

When it comes to redirecting domains while maintaining a secure SSL/HTTPS connection, there are three solutions to consider —

1. Use SurpriseFlow

SurpriseFlow is a powerful tool that simplifies the process of domain redirection while ensuring SSL compatibility.

Here’s how it works —

1. Create an account and go to the “Create a HTTPS Redirect” wizard.

2. Next, you can enter your Source Domain and the Destination URL you want to redirect to.

3. Click on the “Create HTTPS Redirect” button and voila, your redirect is created.

All you need to do next is add the required records to your existing DNS service and your SSL/HTTPS error-free redirect will be active!

Read more about how to use SurpriseFlow or watch the video.

2. Find a DNS service that supports SSL redirects

A lot of modern DNS services support SSL redirects as a feature in their product. Google Domains does SSL redirection free of cost. Other DNS services might charge a premium fee.

Beware of HTTP redirection as that is the most common redirection type supported by most DNS services and it will continue to give you an SSL error.

3. Set up a dedicated redirect website and obtain an SSL certificate.

This is by far the most overkill method to set up an SSL redirect. The way you do this is by setting up a dummy website whose whole job is to redirect to another site. Issuing an SSL certificate for this website will ensure that it does not cause an SSL error.

Conclusion

In this article, we’ve discussed 3 viable solutions for setting up an SSL domain redirect that will not give you an SSL error. Thank you for reading!